Zoids
Alternative title: Zoids: The Battle Begins
Platform: Commodore 64
Gametype: Undefined
_________________________

Description

In this game you are a visiting Earthman, caught in the war between ancient enemies. After you crashed, you joined your rescuers in their war for survival. You are the blue side; your enemies are colored red. You control a gigantic battle-robot, called a Zoid, to attack and defeat other Zoids.

The action takes place from within the cockpit. You have to learn a new way of looking at the world, as your only contact with outside is through the instrument panels of the Zoid. This is not intuitive--it takes some reading, some experimentation, and lots of practice.

What you see on the screen while playing is the cockpit control panels. The computer displays your health and the health of your battle robot both visually and audibly. You see your heartbeat and the bot has a similar heartbeat. You also hear you heartbeats, and these tell you how your combined overall health is.

Other features of the cockpit include a radar-style map that shows your Zoid in relation to the world around you. The map includes terrain features, and anything your instruments pick up is put on the map. All your game controls are displayed around the map, the railgun, shields, jamming, missiles, and general information panels.

Trivia

Rob Hubbard's music for this game is a cover version of the track "Ancestors" by Synergy from the album "Audion".

---

Description from the packaging  (US) :

You are Earthman.
You have just crashed on the most desolate, hostile planet in the universe.
Zoidstar.
Home of the most terrifying war machines ever created.
Zoids.

Their creators are long dead from a poisonous meteor shower, and a civilization of androids has used these Zoids to destroy and conquer the rest of their galaxy.
Now they destroy and conquer each other.
The Blue Zoids are the native inhabitants of Zoidstar and have adopted you into their warlike race.
The Red Zoids, composed of boiling hot metal, are exiles from Zoidstar's Blue Moon.
The battle for Zoidstar supremacy is on, and the Red Zoids are winning. If they are triumphant, the rest of the universe will fall prey to their destructive power.
The androids have chosen you, because of your human instinct and cunning, to lead the Blue Zoids into battle.

You must train in the art of Zoidthought, merge minds with the Blue Zoid fighting machine, and defeat the Red Zoids.
Earthman, the fate of the universe is in your mind.
Information bank and sensors provide enemy warnings and data on city complexes.
Railgun targeting system lets you home in on enemy Zoids and fire high velocity metal projectiles.
Missiles are more difficult to target than the railgun, but are correspondingly more effective.


http://www.mobygames.com/game/c64/zoids
